Laboratory courses for the lecture Fluid Mechanics

The Fluid Mechanics lecture in Mechanical Engineering is supplemented by two laboratory courses. Within the offered laboratories our students have the opportunity to put their theoretical knowledge from the lecture into practice. In addition to deepening the contents of the lectures, in the courses students also get to know current flow measurement technology.

Pressure loss of pipes and fittings

Every flow that flows through a pipeline is constantly deprived of energy. This manifests itself in a decrease in static pressure or in a reduction in the pressure difference that allows the fluid to flow through the pipeline. This pressure loss is caused by friction processes and is converted into heat and sound energy. In practice, knowledge of pressure losses in pipelines and valves plays a major role.

The aim of this laboratory course is to give the students an understanding of the experimental procedure for determining pressure losses as well as frequently used variables such as pipe friction coefficient or form resistance coefficient.

  • Measurement of pressure losses
  • Calculation of pipe friction coefficients and equivalent roughness
  • Using the Moody diagram
  • Determination of the resistance coefficient of a butterfly valve

Examination of an airfoil in a wind tunnel

In technology, flow profiles are not only used in aircraft, but also in pumps, fans, ship propellers, wind turbines and even in rear spoilers of racing cars.

The aim of this laboratory course is to learn how an airfoil works and how the forces acting on it are recorded in practical tests.

  • Wind tunnel Göttingen design
  • Flow around an airfoil
  • Explanation of important terms
  • Determination of lift, drag and torque coefficients
  • Lilienthal's polar diagram
  • Pressure point position

Scripts and laboratory documents are available for download.

Contact:

m.wittek(at)hs-mannheim.de